Kasim Reed’s 10 Steps To “Office for Life”

In yesterday’s (9/24/12) Peach Pundit, one analyst opined, 

“… Kasim Reed is stuck. He can’t run for Governor. He’d lose. He can’t run for U.S. Senate. He’d lose. So where does this new national exposure get him except maybe a plum post in the Obama Administration that, at best, lasts four years.”

Well, that’s part of the story, certainly.

When answering the question, What’s next for Kasim? It's said that June Reed, Kasim's father, likes to offer up a particularly pungent gruel and each time the elder Reed speaks of his son’s White House plans, I simply find it to be a bit too much.

The “junior” Reed has his eye on higher office and Peach Pundit’s analysis opens the door for Rest Of The Story.

Here’s a take on the rough plan Kasim Reed has shared with close associates.

Step 1: Avoid Indictment

Kasim just won’t look good in an orange jump suit. If by chance Reed avoids Federal indictment – we’ll likely know after the national election – then he’ll have nothing but daylight between himself and being elected to office for life.

Step 2: Generate Campaign Cash

A recent AJC headline boomed, “With $1 Million In Bank, Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed Says Fundraising Just Getting Started.” Reed has raised cash faster than any Atlanta incumbent in recent memory and you can’t get mad at him for showing his fundraising prowess – especially once you understand the larger plan he shares with intimates.

Step 3: Raise Money For Obama’s Re-Election

To position himself for an appointment in a second Obama term, Reed has spent the last several months traveling around the nation working backrooms and raising money for the Democratic Party and Obama’s reelection (see donations made to the various campaign committees by those who do work in the city).

Also, known as one of Obama’s top fundraising bundlers, Dan Halpern (Reed’s campaign chairman) is opening checkbooks for Obama’s reelection. The “Halpern / Reed” or “Reed / Halpern” partnership (the order of the names depends on who you ask) has been tense at times recently but “blood oaths” are “blood oaths.”

Step 4: Get a Domestic Cabinet Appointment

Reed’s labors and the efforts of others will help to position Reed for a domestic appointment, think Department of Commerce. Reed sees himself playing the same role Ron Brown and Mickey Kantor played in Bill Clinton’s administrations.

Step 5: Hand-Pick Mayoral Successor

Here’s where it starts to get particularly insidious.

If the Obama Cabinet appointment is timed properly, Reed will have the opportunity to hand-pick his successor. If Reed is permitted by Obama to resign as mayor at the right time (see the Atlanta City Charter), then a special city election will be avoided.

Step 6: Hold-On to Campaign Cash

If Reed can avoid a reelection campaign AND hand-pick his successor then he’ll leave for Washington with a boatload of campaign cash sitting in the bank.

Step 7: Build A Political Machine

Reed’s unspent campaign cash and his hand-selected successor are all the makings of a strong political machine. A politically weak but seemingly competent successor (think Jimmy Hoffa’s successor, Frank Fitzsimmons) will provide the Reed with the opportunity to build and broaden a political machine.

Step 8: Wait Out Lewis

Despite serving as a onetime staff member to the respected Congressman John Lewis, the mutually held enmity is widely discussed in “quiet spaces” around Atlanta.

Step 9: Return To Run For Congress

Let’s face it, at 72 Congressman Lewis has only a few more re-election campaigns before he retires. At the opportune time (a/k/a 2016), Reed will return to Atlanta to run for Congress. He will be well-funded and a successful, uneventful tenure as a cabinet officer in hand.

Step 10: Office For Life

In 2016, Reed will be young enough to count on at least 25 years in office. Moreover, by then several protégés will have served as mayor of Atlanta. With the predicted demographic changes in Georgia, it’s impossible to anticipate Reed’s statewide appeal in 15 years.

Now, I find all of it too wild to imagine but this is what’s happening in Kasim-land, USA.